Door Error Causes Train Rider To Fall Onto Tracks

On Monday, December 17th, 2018, three people were killed aboard an Amtrak commuter train near Olympia, Washington. That incident was the deadliest railway incident since eight people were killed during an Amtrak derailment in Pennsylvania in 2015. Passengers dying aboard trains in railway accidents are becoming increasingly rare. In all of 2016, only one person died on a commuter train. Between January and September of 2017, five people died. In fact, according to Federal Railroad Administration figures, between 2000-2016, there were a total of 108 passengers who died on trains. The majority of people killed by trains are either trespassers or vehicles in the way of trains.

NBC New York reports that a passenger fell from a New Jersey Transit Train when the wrong doors opened.

The incident occurred at around 5:45 p.m. on August 19th. Commuters took to social media to post about the shocking incident.

One rider tweeted after a train they were aboard opened its doors on the wrong side at Secaucus. One passenger fell out onto the tracks.

After the tweet, another passenger replied, confirming that the man fell and the doors quickly closed. One passenger ran through three train cars to find the conductor, who was unaware anything had happened. Other passengers yelled for someone to pull the emergency brake.

It is unclear who pulled the man to safety, but he did suffer minor injuries. He also refused medical treatment.

According to the transit agency, “human error” was the cause of the doors opening.

This was the second incident that day in which doors opened out onto the tracks instead of the platform. Thankfully, no one in the previous incident fell through the doors.

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